Scattered Winds
by caraxare
Summary: At the ripe age of twenty two, Rin finds herself and the old gang face to face with an enemy they thought they defeated over a decade ago. Naraku's back and better than ever. Even Inuyasha can't seem to harm him, so with that in mind, Rin comes up with the idea to set off on her own adventure in search of Sesshomaru - a demon she has also not seen for over ten years. (SessXRin)
1. Chapter 1

It hadn't been long since Sesshomaru had left. Well, actually, that had been a lie. One that Rin muttered silently to herself each evening before she fell into her deep sleep. Memories would flood her dreams over the past that they had shared. The countless times that great demon saved her life and protected her. Lord Sesshomaru had been someone she looked up to in the highest manner. He had always been there for her whenever she needed him, and that is what kept the hope in Rin's heart that he would one day come back to this village and finally take her with him on a brand new adventure.

This very same hope lasted her long over a decade.

The once young, frail Rin had reached the ripe young age of twenty two. Her height had grown to being just under five and a half feet, and her long raven black hair reached down to the middle of her waist. The only bits about her that hadn't changed over the years had been her thin figure and the friendly yet still independent personality she grew up with.

Also though these years, Rin had remained in the same village that she had been left behind in. Kaede had been kind enough to let Rin take shelter in her home for a good long time, but once she could manage the task of living on her own, a purchase had been made for her own shelter. With neighbors like that elderly priestess, Inuyasha, and the Demon Slayer, Rin really couldn't be worried about anything. The young girl made her friends among the village and grew into being quite the star villager. Whenever there was someone who needed an extra helping hand, Rin would be there to aid them. This was her own way to repay the debt she owed the village for taking her in in the first place. Plus, it always put a smile on her faced to hear their appreciation.

Even with all these good deeds under her belt, all Rin could wish for herself was that one day Lord Sesshomaru would come walking back into the village and finally see how strong she had become. She wasn't technically alone anymore, but there was a constant void there in the center of her chest. Yes. Rin loved that demon Lord. How could she not with all he had done for her as a child? The deeper meaning behind this affection was still unclear, but that didn't matter to her. Rin knew how she felt.

* * *

The sun was already beginning to set over the western mountains causing the sky to be painted a multitude of colors from orange to yellow and even smears of indigo. Rin would let her eyes wash over the sky in search of any stars. A wonder would set in her heart to ask if Sesshomaru was staring up at the same time. If he too was thinking about her. Rin had to believe that he was. All this time she knew that he left her here so she could be around humans. To live as they did, but enough had to be enough.

 _He'll come for me_.

There was that hope again.

Rin couldn't let that die.

As she pulled away from the window in order to ready herself for bed, a shriek had been shot through the air alerting the town to a terror none would have imagined.

Over this decade of time, Rin had also managed to concur the act of running into danger than away from it. She had used her luck in friends to help train herself so that no one would have to defend her anymore. So that _he_ would see that he didn't have to protect her. Inuyasha had taught her the skills of a true swordsman as did Sango. Kagome helped in the education of firing off arrows to hit that mark. Of course Rin was no priestess herself, but she was a damn good shot. The monk, Miroku, had shown her how to write out special talismans, and Shippo even taught her a thing or two. All of her friends helped in making her a warrior of her very own caliber; a woman with the skills in the expert arts of dueling with two deadly sharp katanas.

Rin already stained her blades with blood in the past in battle to help protect this village, and it appeared as though she was going to have to do the same thing tonight, but when she had rushed out of her home and into the face of said danger, she hadn't expected to face off an enemy that they all figured they defeated so long ago.

Naraku.

Mixtures of shock and confusion set in on each face of those standing around bearing witness to this corpse using those tentacles of his body to tear a woman limb from limb. Rin had known that woman. She just had a new born child not too long ago, and now her intestines were falling out onto the grass in a pool of blood. A smirk had fallen onto the man's face as the deed feel into the completed stage. Naraku let her body fall with the rest of her innards on the ground. Treating her like nothing, he stepped over her and chuckled. Rin remembered that man's eyes; the eyes of a true monster.

"I don't understand… He's supposed to be dead."

The terrorizing demon flashed a menacing grin, and somehow the wind that blew in their direction then only led to a shiver being sent right down Rin's back. "Truly this can come as no surprise to you, Kagome. This has happened on an occasion once or twice before, has it not?" They all knew that it had, but to take it to this level of waiting over ten years to come back. They had all relaxed into their own lives. All of them were as happy as they could be, and now Naraku was back to bring it all right back down to hell.

Wasting no time with any chatter, Inuyasha ran past them all on a flash. UnsheathingTessaiga in mid leap, the blade was on its way coming down straight onto Naraku's disgusting form. "I've had ten years, Inuyasha. Ten long years to gain my strength back and then some. You fool." The blade of Inuyasha mighty weapon didn't even scratch the surface of Naraku's body.

"You bastard!" Inuyasha had fallen back a few feet. His mind would clearly be racing with strategies on how they were going to defeat him. Even Kagome had tried to fire off one of her sacred arrows, and even that didn't work. Kaede ordered the rest of the villagers to take cover; assuring them that they would handle this. As of right now, no one in their group believed such a thing seeing as that the attacked they tried so far didn't leave any mark.

Night had fallen over the sky now. The fiery shades that had made Rin so happy only moments ago now fell into a sorrowful state of colors that fit in well with the demise they all felt. What would they do if their weapons didn't work on him? How could they defeat an enemy that they could not cut?

Over the course of the next several minutes, Naraku demonstrated some new strength in power. A slaughter of several citizens was left in that wake. Two young children included in that count. Rin couldn't stand to see this happen anymore. Even if it killed her, she didn't want to back down from at least trying to take this guy out, but before she had the chance to fight, Naraku was gone.

Vanished with the wind.

Only bloodies corpses and ruined lives were left.

* * *

Scattered in different positions around the fire, Kaede led the conversation on what their next plan of attack would be. Clearly they were all in agreement that Naraku couldn't be left alive. This much was obvious, but none of them knew the goal now. What would Naraku want from them seeing as that the jewel wasn't even mentioned? There had to be something more to the story of why he waited so long to make a move, but none of them could think of an answer.

"We need help," Rin finally said. Her comment caught the attention of each member in the room. Sango offered the suggestion of asking Koga and his fellow wolf demons for help. Kagome named off some other few allies they had made in the past as well, but none suggested the only name that Rin had thought of. "What about Lord Sesshomaru?"

Silence.

Each of them knew how Rin had been left behind in the village without a word over the past few years, and none of them had heard from the demon either.

" _Tch_. We don't need his help! We don't even know if he's even alive!"

Of course Rin knew that on some level Inuyasha could be right, but that didn't mean the comment irritated her any less. "You're wrong!" The young lady got up to her feet with a set expression of determination on her face. "He is alive and I'm going to go find him! You'll see! Lord Sesshomaru will be able to help!"


	2. Chapter 2

After the events from last night, it was hard for anyone to believe that the past decade of their lives meant anything at all.

What would have been the point of creating such cheerful memories into their history if it was to all be shattered by a single event? Naraku had always been the treacherous type from what Rin recalled from her youth. She could only imagine how long it had taken him to conjure up such a scheme, and perhaps this had been a part of his plan long before they had even defeated him. If anything, this had to be the truth. Some light had flickered a fraction of this idea into that demon's mind, and as time went on through their previous journey, that piece had grown into what it had become.

A decade long operation to ruin their lives unto the very end.

Not a single person had fallen asleep that evening. Their meeting took place through the nightly hours, and while Kaede took it upon herself to feed them all with a batch of vegetable stew, the rest shared opinions on what they were going to do about their sworn enemy coming back from the dead.

It appeared as though Rin's sudden comment about going after Lord Sesshomaru didn't sit too well. Not a single one of them disliked that guy as much as they had at the beginning, but even someone as kind hearted as Kagome could not agree with the fact that he had abandoned Rin all this time. Words has been shared back then that Sesshomaru would come back to see her, but that never did happen, and while Rin was heartbroken about that, she couldn't help but believe that he had to of had a good reason. There was no way that Sesshomaru would ignore her. Not after all the time and adventures they had together. Even if the man never came to admit such a thing, Rin knew that he cared about her, which is why she could not simply give up on him.

Not like he had done to her.

Long bits of conversation continued through the night, and by the break of dawn, a plan had risen. The old gang would be setting off once again to seek out a way to finally rid the world of Naraku. It would be challenging. No one had any doubts about that, but they had no choice. The Naraku from their past had been one evil man, but he hadn't been invincible. Now it appeared as though he was. He wore an armor of skin that not even Inuyasha could break.

This would take some extensive research, but one thing that they all agreed to was that none of them would give up. Not until they knew with all of their hearts and souls that Naraku had been put down once and for all.

"Are you ready to go, Rin?" While the others were setting off in their own direction in order to find this hopeful information in defeating Naraku, Kohaku took it upon himself to volunteer for the mission of seeing out their former Lord. Rin didn't ask for anyone to join her, but she supposed that having him along would be better than talking to herself. Plus, he had grown in a pretty damn good slayer, so he'd make a good partner out there in the fields.

Nodding her head in an anxious motion, Rin and her single traveling companion waved to the others as they set off on their own journey.

 _Do we even know where to start looking_?

Rin certainly would be the one to keep hope that they would eventually find the dog demon, but from what she could remember from the old days, their group had never settled down in one location for too long. They were always moving. Always out there in the world seeking their victory against Naraku. Rin remembered sleeping under the stars almost every night with a feeling of security knowing that Sesshomaru was watching over her.

 _He's out there somewhere_.

The sound of chirping birds filled in the air around them, which happened to bring Rin into a happier state of mind. Such a beautiful day with the blue skies and shining sun had her almost believing that last night had been some horrid dream. If that was the case, then she wouldn't be out here, weapons on her back, traveling to seek out an old friend, but she could still imagine for the best.

"Hey, Kohaku…" Rin's tone of voice had come out on a rather soft volume, but the young man had caught wind of her words and turned his gaze ever so slightly in her direction to indicate so. "Do you think that if Naraku made himself known to us, that maybe he's also done the same thing to Lord Sesshomaru?"

It would make sense if this was the case.

Back in the day, it had been rumored that only he would be able to take down that callous demon. Sesshomaru, the son of the Great Dog Demon. He had grown into a set of fame all because of who his father was, but Sesshomaru had also become his own man by the end of their journey. He had finally let go of the past, and his anger. That cold hearted demon that everyone once knew became something so much greater, but of course, Rin always saw him as someone filled with kindness. He just had a different way of expressing that.

In any case, Rin figured that if Naraku still held that personality he had back in the day, he would not hold back from running his survival into Sesshomaru's face, and if that happened, then their Lord would be seeking out that demon as well. Eventually, they would have to meet.

"Maybe we should just start looking for Naraku instead."

Rin was in a clear rush to find that golden eyed dog again, but Kohaku had voiced his opinion then with topics of more _what ifs_. There was a good chance that Naraku had only ended up greeting them the night before, and that Sesshomaru knows nothing of his existence. If this ended up being a fact, then if they started searching for that evil, the one they were really seeking wouldn't show. Not unless by some chance rumor already spread, but Rin had to figure that if Naraku waited over ten years to arise, then he would be careful who he showed his face to. Not many would know just yet of the sinister demon's survival.

Naraku had a plan. A devious one set into action, and they had to figure out what that is.

"You're right." Rin couldn't feel stupid for having hope like she did. That had always been her way. Even as times grew tough, she would not fall to the level of defeat.

After a time which felt close to hours, the two had finally made their way to a village where they hoped they'd find some information as to the whereabouts of their demon friend. This town itself wasn't exactly a capital city, but many people wandered the streets into the various aisles of shops and banquet halls. Way back when as memory served her, Rin recalled this village being along the quieter side where people would happily wave to strangers or give a free meal. But as of now, her eyes took in the sight of tough travelers wearing ink on their arms and smoking like a fire pit. Time had not served this town well, for as the buildings grew, as did the population. Eventually, this whole village grew into sometime similar to a red light district.

This was certainly not the place that they would find their Lord, but if anyone had to know something, they would be here in this location. Rumors traveled here all the time, because men from all over would come to have their fun before going home to their families and such. Rin could not stand the sight of women acting as they did here, but she supposed that everyone had to make a living.

Kohaku and she both fell into agreement that they'd cover far more ground if they happened to split up. They'd meet back at the front gates in about an hours' time, but during those minutes, they'd have to tough it out all on their own.

These days, unless she was back home in Kaede's village, Rin walked around wearing an outfit something similar to that of Sango's old demon slayer uniform, only her's had been set to purely black. This wasn't done in a way to silently share her combat skills with others, but more for the comfort and ease, because having to constantly change from wardrobe to wardrobe in battle and not grew to being irritating. Plus, it worked out for a village like this. Sure men were gazing at the curve of her backside and they shared in the cat calls, but none were approaching her as they would if she were in some traditional kimono. Each man would probably figure that she'd be able to whip their butts into shape if they dared try, or at least this is the reasoning she hoped for.

Rin shared her voice with a few people she had felt were worthy of her approach. Mainly due to the fact that these individuals did not appear to be intoxicated.

It had only taken several conversation with these people for Rin to realize that she may get more information if she went into a few of the buildings. Sure rumors spread, but not as many words were shared on the streets as they were inside the establishments were people grew rowdy.

Bringing herself over towards a red curtain hanging as a door, Rin pulled the fabric aside to face a cloud of smoke. Her lungs didn't appreciate the change into filthy air, but this was something that she needed to do in order to get anywhere in their investigation. Slowly her feet began to move her into the dimly lit hall.

Three lanterns were lit along each wall of the long corridor which took about fifty more paces for her to reach the end. A loud drum of music had been echoing through this place, and Rin figured it'd be best to follow the beat more so than to ignore it, so she would take a left down the hall in follow to these tunes versus the right pathway which had fallen into a dark unlit mist.

The young woman pressed on down this new hall to where she found one more right turn to be ahead of her, and then she had fallen straight into the back room of this establishment. Across the large space her eyes caught large, muscled men sharing in a drink and a laugh with dolled up women catering to their every whim. Tables among tables and cushioned chaired filled up the room, and all of them were full. That polluted air didn't appear to bother a single soul, except for her own, but Rin found herself determined.

With the desire set in mind to chat with someone that worked at this place other than a painted faced woman, Rin found herself walking into the sea of mongrels. She was searching for anyone that appeared like they would be in charge, but as she dove deeper, none fit the bill. The dim candlelight around the room didn't exactly help out her cause either.

"May I help you with something?"

A voice had called out to her in a deep toned voice. Rin caught the words emanating from the space behind her, so as she turned her form to face the caller, her eyes fell into a middle aged man dressed up in some of the flashiest women's clothing. Rin wore an expression of surprise for merely a moment, but she accepted whatever was going on and hoped to fall into a conversation only because this being had been the only one to address her thus far.

"Yes. My name is – "

But this man had suddenly cut her off. A smug grin grew along his painted up lips as the other woman serving his glass lightly giggled into the air as if some joke had been spoken that Rin did not understand. "Please, do join me. My name is Mikoto, and I am the owner here." Those navy eyes of his sized up her body which had Rin feeling slightly uncomfortable especially in this setting, but she had focused on keeping a stern expression on her face. "Clearly you are not one of the new ladies I've hired, so if you wish to speak with me, I'll require that you share in a drink." The man rose his hand in order to gesture towards the cushions set just beside him where women that had been sitting there scooted a few paces over.

Unhappy with what she had gotten herself into, Rin moved her feet sluggishly towards the cushioned spot beside the man, but before she could actually take her seat, his hand had risen up to grip along her thin wrist. With a sudden yank of his strength, her body fell right down onto his lap. Rin had been so caught off guard by the motion, she had no idea that one of the woman around them had taken the swords from her back until Rin's eyes saw them in another woman's arms.

As Rin began to struggle in order to retrieve her things and take her leave, the male's lap she sat upon had felt it was necessary to wrap his arms tightly around her body and hold her to him. "Now, there is no need to be fussy. I am just trying to ensure your comfort."

Rin narrowed her eyes. "Thanks for that, but I'd be far better suited in my own chair."

This man, Mikoto, raised a grin again.

Clearly that request of her's would go unheard. Rin figured that while one of his arms gently ran down the length of her arm. "A woman with such beauty shouldn't be wander into places such as this alone. The men here may catch the wrong idea, and this would be very bad for business, you see." Rin understood then. This painted up male was not coming onto her in any strange way, but instead he was trying an attempt at scaring her into leaving before his intoxicated customers tried to take advantage of her.

With her patients worn very thin, Rin moved in his hold to which he had released her. To show that she wasn't someone to frighten so easily, her body fell into that open cushion beside him. Rin reached out before her towards a small table and poured herself a small sip of the sake. In one fluid motion, the glass came to her lips and she guzzled it all down. "That's very well and all, and trust me, I am not here to stain your business with any misdoings. I'm only seeking information, as you said, so let me ask my questions then I'll be on my way."

Mikoto took a moment to read her words in his head.

After another moment, the woman holding her blades set them near Rin once again as she and the other woman moved to scatter about the room leaving Mikoto to chat with his guest in private. People in this social business had to carry a lot of gossip around with them. It was almost a necessity of their job titles, and this one clearly knew that. "I can't be sure if I will have any answers for you, but please do share."

Rin did not take long at all to talk about the man she was looking for. Someone like Sesshomaru wouldn't be easily forgotten. In sharing her description of this man, a longer story began to unfold about the history that stood between them. Somewhere along the line, Mikoto took it upon himself to question her feelings for this demon seeing as that quite a relationship had built up in their past. All Rin could explain about her emotions were the same as she told herself. Sesshomaru had been almost like a guardian angel to her, and she just needed to find him again and show him that she wasn't in need of his protection anymore. That she had grown up to defend herself.

"I see…" Mikoto poured them both another cup of sake. Rin took hers but didn't drink any of the contents yet. "But do you not believe that if this demon friend of yours cared for your wellbeing then he wouldn't have abandoned you as he did?" This was the same concern all the rest of her friends had had too. Rin hated haring it, but who was she to deny a possibility.

"Maybe that's the case, but it doesn't matter, because my growing up isn't the only thing I need to tell him. Some friends and I, we need his help, so either way, I have to find him."

Rin let that drink travel into her stomach again. As someone who rarely drinks, she was beginning to feel the buzz. It wouldn't be good for her to start seeing blurry visions, so this would be her last glass. When she set the glass down, Mikoto only shared with her what he knew from legend. These stories were something she had heard countless times already. Inuyasha shared a lot of them because he was proud of his father, but Rin didn't need to hear them now. "Unfortunately I can't say that I've heard anything about this Sesshomaru though. Not for some years anyway. Travelers from across the lands come to this town, you see, and many stories stalk the streets. A silvery haired demon is no topic one could easily forget, so I do believe the last case I heard about a male fitting said description would have been set… perhaps five years ago." The story did not hold much weight. All Mikoto knew had been that this rumored demon slaughtered some thieves out on a distant trail. Surely this could have been Sesshomaru, but from five years ago, Rin knew that this would get her nowhere.

Back at the gates of town, Rin found herself alone for only a few minutes before Kohaku arrived. The both of them swapped stories of their travels here in town. Rin's had ended up being very disappointing at the end, but Kohaku caught more of a lead than either would have imagined. Because it grew to be a fact that Kohaku was no longer a skittish child, he was not afraid to ask the tough questions and thrash some skulls to get his answers. With about three fights under his best for this town so far, he learned that an elderly woman living up in the mountains had shared with other travelers that she once gave aid to an injured demon fitting Lord Sesshomaru's description.

"Are you sure?" Rin could only doubt this lead because a man like the one they knew didn't ask for help easily. Actually, Rin didn't ever remember him needing any. Sesshomaru had always been the stubborn type.

Kohaku agreed with this. He had almost dismissed the tale too, until the information arose that this demon had a crescent shaped moon on his forehead.

"How long ago was this?"

"Four weeks."

Rin knew that this time was still a long while, but it was far better than the information she got, so they now knew their next heading. They could only hope they'd get closer to their goal.


End file.
